Hiker’s body discovered

The remains of a body, discovered last week by a hunter near Indian Lake, has been tentatively identified as that of a California man missing since Columbus Day weekend, the state Department of Environmental Conservation reported.

Forest Rangers and New York State Police Investigator believe they have recovered the remains of Fred Gillingham of Camarillo, Calif.

A hunter reported finding the remains of a person late Monday afternoon in an area north of the Rock River. An autopsy is pending.

The 72-year-old man, who owns a camp in the Hamilton County Town of Indian Lake, was reported missing on Wednesday, October 15, by a friend who was checking on him after he had missed a dinner engagement. State Police located his vehicle at the Rock River trailhead and contacted rangers.

Mr. Gillingham had actually hiked into the area on October 12. After searching for 12 days and expending over 5,000 man hours in the search effort without any clues, the search operation was downgraded on October 27.

The body was located north of the Rock River outside of the primary search area.